sipsi (02-21-2015)
Give her 1 1/2 tspn of organic apple cider vinegar (Braggs) in her a.m. and p.m. meal with water added for the dandruff, flakes. Shake well to get the sediment off the bottom (called the mother) when serving. Give it time to work. I have seen results in a 10-12 week old pup in 2 weeks.
I do not see chicken being the cause of the flakes. Especially not in such a young pup. It is my understanding that most dogs that have food allergy issues do not develop them until around 2 years of age. However, I could have heard wrong. I have not had any food allergies.
Patty
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sipsi (02-21-2015)
You also have to be sure and check the calcium amounts for a growing pup. 1.3% or below is best. the calcium/phosphorus ratio is important too and should be 1.2/1
This Acana product is safe for a growing pup. I would not worry about changing from lamb to chicken - just do a slow switch.
Chicken & Burbank Potato | ACANA Pet Foods
I will also disagree that a higher protein is not safe for growing pups - I fed Origen to my litters (switched to the Acana when my keeper from last litter was still growing because of financial reasons). However, higher protein has more calcium and phosphorous so not all grain free foods like Origen are safe for a growing Lab pup. However their LBP formula is safe and my litters did great on it. Switched to the Adult chicken formula at 12 months of age. I spoke with a lot of breeders prior to going grain free/high protein with my litters.
This Acana puppy formula (not sure if it is the one you mention) is too hi in calcium (and ratio as well)
Puppy Large Breed | ACANA Pet Foods
So is this one
Puppy & Junior | ACANA Pet Foods
Note the calcium and ratio in this
Chicken & Burbank Potato | ACANA Pet Foods
Last edited by Snowco Labradors; 02-20-2015 at 06:28 PM.
Patty
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sipsi (02-21-2015)
I don't blame you for your concern at all. It's exactly how we felt, too. It didn't make sense to me that the second and third ingredient of my dear puppy's food was a corn product and I was irked by the fact that "animal fat" could be sourced from poultry, beef, pork, or any combination of the three (according to Purina, whom I called directly to ask about their ingredients). I also couldn't get them to give me a straight answer as to the origin of their vitamin and mineral mix (specifically, if it as a whole or any of its individual components originate from China). We spend a lot of money on quality food for ourselves and wanted to do the same for our little girl, I just wish we had waited a little bit longer to allow her intestines to mature a little bit and gain some resiliency.
The whole grain free dog food is kinda new. Some people think its not necessary and only should be fed if your dog shows a reason. Chili always had the most solid poops on the non grain free /cheaper dog foods. now whether size/hardness of poops is the best way to gauge the health of a pup is above my paygrade. but soft serve is not healthy imo.
I read about JenC mentioning risk and going with what she knows works. I agree about not taking risks/minimizing risks with your pup. I did way too many risky things with chili when he was a pup thinking it was best. If chili ever has issues I will look back on those risks I took and wonder/second guess if it was cause of me.
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